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Costume Design lives at the intersection of character, context and concept. The most intimate of the theatrical design elements, it literally lives on the body of the actor as the outward expression of their inner lives: their history, aspirations, confidences and fears. What do they hide or reveal, offer or reject? Next, it places them within the context of the world of the play – what is this world and where do they fit within it? Finally, the particular joy of theatrical design is in the telling of the larger story. What do we, the theatremakers, believe is the story that we are trying to tell? The same series of events, in the hands of different artists, may tell a story of violence or redemption - the danger of ambition or the triumph of good. We choose our lens and offer the audience our very particular interpretation. Costumes are never merely clothes – but convey a myriad of ideas through the elements of line and silhouette, color and texture. Dozens of choices are made for each garment with the goal of telling each character’s story in a way that will only be told in this particular marriage of actor, director and designer. Taken out of the context of the play and no longer given life by the actor, costumes may lose their magic, but still tell a story of design.
